Sounds a good idea to me.

Wouldn't worry too much about getting looky loos/time wasters, they will always stand out so just kick them out.

Fuzz

This is clearly a subject you all feel strongly about and while i can understand it to a degree there are some people like myself who do not post much due to being seriously shy / nervous voicing opinions around people I feel are much more qualified than I.  As you will have seen at the last care and share day I don't say much (hence my silent character in our shows) but i do enjoy the balloons and have moments of inspiration and am willing to listen and learn.

just another point of view
Sharon

Sharon,
I dont think its a case of excluding people more that we can talk about the whole industry without worrying about prying eyes.
Having said that who'd want to view all that we post on the good old latex. Mind you there are some very sad people about :lol:

We could put a password on the whole forum so that only members can see our posts?

It would be good to find a way of encouraging everyone to join in as if we all just viewed we'd all be looking at empty pages
I've learnt lots of things from people that have been twisting for years & plenty from those that have just started out. We all seem to come together from various ways & all have different experiences to share with each other.

Graham

Please dont get me wrong I have learnt SO much from the people on this forum and I appreciate it totally and it was incredibly flattering that other's with more experience made the santa hat and posted their pictures.  

I just seem to get tongue tied when it comes to posting my opinion - not sure why as I regularly stand up in front of hundreds of people from across the Globe and host education sessions as part of my daily job!!  I guess it's all about comfort zones and confidence  

Maybe I'm beginning to get over it - you might regret opening this pandora's box        

sharon  :mrgreen:

I like the idea of a members only forum, and I agree with others' concerns about the 50 post requirement. There are some topics that would be best discussed out of the public view, such as how to handle difficult situations (parents who insist that you make "just one more," what to do if there's a disturbance (disruptive guest, child wets pants, etc.). It's also important to share our enthusiasm about balloon art in a way that the public can feel engaged and excited about hiring us to work at their events, and so that new or prospective balloon artists feel welcome to our community, so it would be best if we strive for balance.

Modine
http://www.laughsbymodine.com

brill idea graham am i right in thinking it will be for professionals to talk about pro issues if so how about taking in to consideration things like - equity membership - public liability insurance - CRB checks  that way you can keep the open forum for posting balloon topics models etc and have a members area just for discussing pro work issues
                       DENNIS

Appreciate your views Dillinger, and I do empathise with them in many ways...

However there are quite a few very active users of this board who are probably a little more than 'hobbyists' but not quite what you would call a 'pro'. Where are you going to fit us into your tiers of membership?

Depends on the objectives I guess, but if the objective is to increase membership and contribution then I don't see your version of the strategy doing it with me... it will probably just lead me to go seek a friendlier place.

Martin.

Could I also point out that just because an area of a forum is members only it DOES NOT MEAN NO ONE ELSE CAN SEE IT.

Another forum I am on is mainly members only (basically if you want to see anything of value you have to register and people can see you lurking because your name is listed at the bottom of the screen rather than guest) but if people google the right thing posts can and do appear in the results.  

It would be better to have certain areas of the site members only but please don't think you can say things in there that parents could stumble across - especially since quite a few of you have you stage name and general location in your posts.  You still need to make sure you do not say anything that you would not wish your customers to read  

This has realy opened a can of worms
the hole point of the members only part is to give some where to speak open about thing you dont want others seeing not other twisters but people who might book you, things like "I dont care I am there for the money get them in get them out" Or "Why should I work for free when I am on TV"
think about how that makes us look as twister and people?
I see some people are upset by the 50 post rule then we need to come together and see what we can come up with how about a poll?
1= 50 post
2= Invite only
3= keep the hole thing on lock down and get a new password
4= keep it as it is NO members only part
5= PM Graham and he sees who you are what you doing and sees if you need to go in

I would just like to say I thank Graham he is doing a great job on the forum and dont be so hard on him, as I will put my hand up right now and SAY "this was my idea about the members only part"

Blimey  Decisions, decisions. I can see the usefullness of a seperate area away from prying eyes but as Yvonne said you could do a google search & perhaps get in to see via the back door.
I have no intention of making it a them & us situation, I have learnt loads myself from experienced twisters who've been in the game for years but I also love the excitement & enthusiasm of a newbie & the way they look upon things with eyes wide open. They approach things so much differently than from those with more experience, we can all learn from each other.
All I really want to do is to encourage the members to post a bit more with some good discussions & models being shown & then hopefully we'll get a few more active members joining as well.

So we could make the area open to all members of the forum no matter how many posts have been made Dennis :lol: I would email the password to all that ask to join in but would ask everyone that has access to this area to be active in it as well.
This might then get all the non member lurkers to join to see what's being talked about or we could just put a password (if possible) on the whole forum as it is & only leave a couple of topics on open display as it seems this would get us the same result.

Any other idea's for what to name the area if we go this way apart from Roger's "Area 51"

Quote from: "Graham Lee"then hopefully we'll get a few more active members joining as well.

  kev i think that was aimed at you you ugly bugger :lol:  :lol:

Nice idea Graeme, I'd welcome an area away from the public eye where everything can be discussed.

You wouldn't need a seperate login, just make up the new forum on Balloon Chat, but have it set as private, with access limited to only logged on members. If you want access limited to members who've contributed to the forum you need to make a group, set the forum so only that group can access it, and put all those you want to have access into that group.

You say about a google search, if you make the forum private, as the wobbly is, only logged on members can read the posts. Anyone who managed to find their way there hits the log on page. As with the committee area, only certain members have access to that.

It's all down to the settings.

Alternativly why not just make the whole of Balloon Chat privateand thus only logged on members can read and post.

"Any other idea's for what to name the area if we go this way apart from Roger's "Area 51"


 Howabout

The Climb in Balloon zone

Area 646 or 660

 

If memory serves, (which means don't take what I'm about to say to the bank  :lol:  ), back before mbd2 started taking donations in order to access the instructions and chat room, things were set up so that only registered members could access the instructions.  You didn't need a password beyond the one that you had to use in order to just log onto the forum.  

Now this didn't increase the number of people willing to post, it just forced them to sign up if they wanted to see behind the curtain so to speak.  

I don't know the rules governing what can and can't be said across the big pond, but here in the states we aren't allowed to discuss actual pricing for what we charge for a party/event.  It would be considered price fixing.  :roll:  

As for being able to discuss anything and everything including a bad client or a disruptive child... I have to agree with Yvonne, "Could I also point out that just because an area of a forum is members only it DOES NOT MEAN NO ONE ELSE CAN SEE IT."  If it is posted on the web, consider it in public view. So even if this area were to made a members only area, you would still have to be careful about how you worded whatever grievance you had.  By the way, both BHq and MBD2 allow posts like these to be viewed by anyone.  While we may all want our clients to think there is never a problem, I don't think there is anything wrong with letting John Doe public know that some things just aren't cool... Like the kid that kicks you in the shins just for the heck of it or the client that rings you up 1 hour before the party and cancels.

Just my thoughts,
Bonnie, The Balloon Lady

I must say if you did make the members area for members who have posted more than 50 times it wouldn't be very crowded, if you check the members list you'd see that out of 300+ members only around 35-40 have posted more than 50 times.

You'd be amazed how many have been members for months and have never contributed, I've only just joined so wouldn't be elegible for the members area just yet, but I still think it's a good idea, and it may just encourage those that don't post to actually join in.

In answer to your next questions, Yes I was very bored when I started checking the list, , no I can't sleep and yes I do need to get a social life